* Major League Baseball ignored the steroid problem for far too long. It’s good to see the league taking action against an even uglier threat to the game – sloppy-looking media members. MLB has issued a dress code for reporters, which includes no visible undergarments. Terry’s a sharp-dressed dude. Me? Not as much. Good thing I don’t cover MLB.

* New Yorker film critic David Denby got into a bit of trouble with his review of the upcoming movie The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Denby loved the movie, that’s not the problem. The issue, according to enraged producer Scott Rudin, is that Denby broke an embargo, writing about the movie well before its release, despite signing a statement saying he wouldn’t. Hollywood fight!

* Here’s an uplifting tale of Nick Saban stepping over a convulsing player when he coached the Dolphins, all because he needed to show leadership to his men.

* In light of the Albert Pujols deal, a look back at when salaries were really out of control in baseball. This SI cover is from 1985. And here’s the story, which talks about Tim Raines becoming baseball’s 36th million-dollar-a-year player.

* Although hardly a list guy in general ala John Cusak in Hi Fidelity, I’m willing to admit city-based lists do interest me. The latest: The 25 coldest cities in America. Not surprisingly, the Upper Midwest is well represented, including my current home, Sioux Falls, at No. 8, and my former home, Fargo, at No. 4.
What’s interesting, is not that it’s cold in the Dakotas, but that many of these same, seemingly nondescript cities seem to pop up on so many lists. In the last couple months alone, Sioux Falls and Fargo have been named among the 10 happiest places, the 10 unluckiest places and now the 10 coldest places. Both also show up on all sorts of business and quality of life lists.
My take on that: These two towns (I’m not even sure they’re cities) are like the basketball player who plays taller than he is. There are plenty of others in the country with similar size and services, but not many of them stand out the way that Sioux Falls and Fargo do, largely because they’re the largest (and best) in their respective cities.